Funeral Attendants Salary: $44,079 Median Pay (2026 stats)
TL;DR
About 30,560 funeral attendants nationally earn a mean of $44,079. Employment in the series shown fell about 17% from the first to the last year; projections imply about 1.9% annual decline.
Key Statistics
Funeral Attendants: what the data shows
Common questions about funeral attendants careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a funeral attendants?
Funeral Attendants is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 39-4021.
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 30,560 workers.
What does a funeral attendants do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Performing for or Working Directly with the Public, Assisting and Caring for Others, Getting Information, Communicating with People Outside the Organization, Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events, Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
How much does a funeral attendants make?
BLS national median annual wage: $34,610 (May 2024 in our extract).
Mean annual wage in our occupational extract: $44,079 — higher than the median, which often reflects top earners in the distribution.
Wage percentiles below are from the California OEWS extract (not national unless noted).
| Wage percentile | Annual wage |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $35,604 |
| 25th percentile | $36,849 |
| Median (50th) | $40,068 |
| 75th percentile | $47,637 |
| 90th percentile | $56,872 |
What education do you need?
For Funeral Attendants, O*NET incumbent surveys in our extract most often report: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%).
These are education levels of current workers, not minimum legal requirements.
What skills do you need?
O*NET ratings for this occupation emphasize skills such as Social Perceptiveness, Speaking, Service Orientation, Monitoring, Active Listening, Coordination, and knowledge areas including Customer and Personal Service, English Language, Public Safety and Security, Psychology. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is funeral attendants in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 1.9% annual decline (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: -8.9%.
Ten-year projected employment change: -17.1%.
Current U.S. headcount: 30,560.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
Where do funeral attendantss work?
Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:
| Industry | Employment | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-industry | 30,560 | 20.1% |
| Cross-industry, Private Ownership only | 30,530 | 20.1% |
| Other Services (except Public Administration) | 30,300 | 19.9% |
| Personal and Laundry Services | 30,300 | 19.9% |
| Death Care Services | 30,300 | 19.9% |
| Federal, State, and Local Government, including State and Local Government Schools and Hospitals and the U.S. Postal Service (OEWS Designation) | 40 | 0.0% |
See Industry for charts.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for Funeral Attendants in O*NET:
See Related degrees.
What careers are related?
Other occupations linked through shared degree pathways in our mapping:
| Occupation | U.S. employment | Median wage |
|---|---|---|
| Morticians, Undertakers, and Funeral Arrangers | 25,700 | $49,800 |
| Embalmers | 3,420 | $56,280 |
Employment
Employment and salary information for the Funeral Attendants workforce.
Employment Over Time
30,560 Workforce in 2023
The Funeral Attendants workforce has been growing over time.
Historical employment trends for Funeral Attendants.
Yearly Wage Ranking
$44,079 Average Wage
In 2023, Funeral Attendants earned an average of $44,079.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Funeral Attendants.
Salary distribution for Funeral Attendants.
Employment Growth Projections
-1.9% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
4,953 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: -8.9%
4,511 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: -17.1%
This occupation is experiencing a decline. Consider related fields with better growth prospects.
Historical employment trends and future projections for Funeral Attendants.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ Funeral Attendants and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of Funeral Attendants employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for Funeral Attendants.
Wage Trends by Industry
-3.0% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate
Historical wage growth trends by industry for Funeral Attendants.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for Funeral Attendants.
State employment and wages are from the U.S. BLS OEWS May 2024 state extract. Metropolitan areas use the national MSA file when available.
Top States by Employment
Top States by Employment:
- TX: 1,980 employees, $31,450 avg wage
- OH: 1,630 employees, $33,880 avg wage
- PA: 1,610 employees, $34,850 avg wage
- NC: 1,580 employees, $39,510 avg wage
- CA: 1,550 employees, $42,860 avg wage
- NY: 1,520 employees, $40,850 avg wage
- MI: 1,520 employees, $31,800 avg wage
- FL: 1,470 employees, $34,000 avg wage
- VA: 1,410 employees, $34,420 avg wage
- GA: 1,270 employees, $32,080 avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for Funeral Attendants.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: 1,250 employees, $46,690 avg wage
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN: 780 employees, $36,100 avg wage
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA: 630 employees, $43,040 avg wage
- Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI: 600 employees, $32,610 avg wage
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA: 570 employees, $33,960 avg wage
- Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD: 480 employees, $40,050 avg wage
- Pittsburgh, PA: 460 employees, $33,710 avg wage
- Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH: 400 employees, $50,960 avg wage
- Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX: 400 employees, $32,710 avg wage
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX: 380 employees, $31,830 avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Funeral Attendants.
Diversity
Demographic information on Funeral Attendants in the US.
Gender and Age
The workforce of Funeral Attendants in 2023 was 30,560 people, with 62.0% women and 38.0% men.
Gender and age distribution for Funeral Attendants.
Races
Racial and ethnic shares when present in the career dataset. If the chart area shows a notice instead, occupational race/ethnicity fields are not yet populated for this extract.
Race and ethnicity distribution for Funeral Attendants.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for Funeral Attendants.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by Funeral Attendants in 2023 were Business Administration, Business, Social Sciences.
Common majors for Funeral Attendants.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by Funeral Attendants workers.
Education level distribution for Funeral Attendants.
Skills
Funeral Attendants need many skills, but most especially Social Perceptiveness, Speaking, Service Orientation, Monitoring, Active Listening.
Required skills for Funeral Attendants.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for Funeral Attendants.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for Funeral Attendants include Customer and Personal Service, English Language, Public Safety and Security, Psychology, Transportation.
Knowledge areas required for Funeral Attendants.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for Funeral Attendants include Oral Comprehension, Oral Expression, Speech Clarity, Speech Recognition, Problem Sensitivity.
Required abilities for Funeral Attendants.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by Funeral Attendants.
Daily Activities
Funeral Attendants spend their time on activities such as Performing for or Working Directly with the Public, Assisting and Caring for Others, Getting Information, Communicating with People Outside the Organization, Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events.
Most important work activities for Funeral Attendants.
About
Funeral Attendants
The average yearly wage for Funeral Attendants was $44,079 in 2023.
SOC Code
39-4021 - Funeral Attendants
Insights and Analysis
Compensation snapshot: Funeral Attendants reports an average salary of $44,079.
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 30,560 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual decline is -1.9%, which should inform long-term career planning.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS), and O*NET Online.
All wage figures represent annual averages and may vary by location, industry, and experience level.